Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker PARIS (AP) — The mayor of a French coastal town being used in a rescue operation says 12 migrants are dead after their boat ripped apart Tuesday during an attempted crossing of the English Channel the bottom of the boat ripped open,” said Olivier Barbarin mayor of Le Portel near the fishing port of Boulogne-sur-Mer where a first aid post was set up to treat victims.“If people don’t know how to swim in the agitated waters .. The mayor said 12 died after initially giving a toll of 13 a spokesman for the French maritime prefecture that oversees that stretch of sea said rescuers pulled a total of 65 people from the waters in a search operation that lasted more than four hours Baggio called it the deadliest migrant boat tragedy in the English Channel this year Many of those aboard didn’t have life vests It was not immediately clear how the boat ripped open or what kind of boat it was Some attempt the crossing in rubber dinghies The maritime prefecture said the boat got into difficulty off Gris-Nez point between Boulogne-sur-Mer and the port of Calais further north Sea temperatures off northern France were around 20 degrees C Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said he was heading to the scene of what he described as the “terrible shipwreck.” Last week the leaders of France and Britain agreed to deepen cooperation on illegal migration in the channel Europe’s increasingly strict asylum rule s growing xenophobia and hostile treatment of migrants have been pushing them north At least 30 migrants have died or gone missing while trying to cross to the U.K according to the International Organization for Migration That figure doesn't include the latest deaths At least 2,109 migrants have tried to cross the English Channel on small boats in the past seven days The data includes people found in the channel or on arrival World Subscribers only Romania enters government crisis amid election World Subscribers only In Zurich the leaf blower war or the anti-'woke' backlash World Subscribers only Germany's Friedrich Merz is embracing pragmatism World Subscribers only Founder of Sant'Egidio community fears next pope could undo Francis's legacy Opinion Subscribers only 'Russian gas and Europe is an old story that ended badly Economy Subscribers only Europe's steel industry flattened by crisis World Subscribers only How European countries plan to fund defense efforts France Subscribers only Macron announces 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the early 20th century which survived the bombings of the Second World War are a delight for French and Belgian tourists the town's population swells from 8,000 to 25,000 children were playing at low tide and dogs were romping on the beach a different kind of visitor has been arriving in this region on the Opal Coast whose chalky cliffs can be seen on a clear day more and more migrant boats have been setting sail from the south of Pas-de-Calais departures were concentrated around Dunkirk and Calais further north a group of around 50 people set off from Ambleteuse – a village near Wimereux – to cross the English Channel their overloaded dinghy wrecked on the rocks it was from the wide beach of the Slack dunes that a group of mostly Eritreans had set sail shortly before 8 am The year 2024 is already the deadliest since the emergence these rafts of less than 10 meters on which up to 60 or even 80 people are crammed You have 72.15% of this article left to read Lecture du Monde en cours sur 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Votre abonnement n’autorise pas la lecture de cet article Pour plus d’informations, merci de contacter notre service commercial. Notifications can be managed in browser preferences. A pregnant woman and six children were among 12 people who died after their boat sank trying to cross I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Just one day after 12 migrants died in a failed attempted crossing of the English Channel, another boat carrying several dozen people appears to be making another attempt from northern France on Wednesday, seemingly trying to head toward Britain. Journalists on a beach in Wimereux, on the northern French coastline and close to the site of Tuesday’s deadly sinking, are broadcasting live video of an inflatable boat carrying people, seemingly migrants, out to sea. It comes as it was revealed a pregnant woman and six children were among 12 people who died after their boat sank trying to cross the English Channel. The French coastguard confirmed the deaths after up to 65 people were rescued off the coast of Cap Gris-Nez on Tuesday. The local prosecutor’s office said 10 women and two men were killed in the incident, according to the BBC. French interior minister Gerald Darmanin wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, that dozens of people had been crammed in a boat less than seven metres long. “I came to Boulogne-sur-Mer to meet and thank the emergency services, the police and the sailors who were able to save 51 people from drowning by intervening very quickly and very courageously,” he said. Mr Darmanin described it as a “terrible shipwreck”, adding: “The provisional toll stands at 12 dead, two missing and several injured. “All government services are mobilised to find the missing and take care of the victims.” Home Secretary Yvette Cooper branded the incident “horrifying and deeply tragic” as she said “vital” efforts to dismantle “dangerous and criminal smuggler gangs” and to boost border security “must proceed apace”. Mr Darmanin said most of the people on the boat were believed to have been from Eritrea, and most of the victims were women. Speaking to reporters at Boulogne-sur-Mer, where the casualties are being treated, he said as many as 75 people can be put on boats ahead of a crossing attempt. “These boats go down very, very quickly, this is the reason why a lot of people get killed on these journeys,” he said, according to a BBC News translation. Olivier Barbarin, the mayor of Le Portel near Boulogne-sur-Mer, said that the bottom of the boat “ripped open”. All of the people on board the dinghy ended up in the water, many of whom were not wearing life jackets, and several of the migrants needed emergency medical care, according to the French coastguard. Ms Cooper said she was in touch with Mr Darmanin and was being kept updated on the situation, adding: “Our hearts go out to the loved ones of all those who have lost their lives, and all those who have been seriously injured.” The latest casualties mean more than 30 people have died in Channel crossings so far this year. The International Organisation for Migration, which records Channel crossing deaths as part of its Missing Migrant Project, estimates 226 people including 35 children are missing or have died after attempting the crossing as of January this year. Ministers have raised fears about people smugglers cramming more and more migrants onto increasingly poor boats to risk the crossing. Charities and campaigners reiterated calls for urgent changes to curb Channel crossings as they lamented the latest loss of life at sea. Enver Solomon, chief executive of the Refugee Council, said the number of deaths in the Channel this year had been “shockingly high” and the “devastating trend shows the urgent need for a comprehensive and multi-pronged approach to reduce dangerous crossings”. “Enforcement alone is not the solution,” he added, as he called on the Government to open up more safe and legal routes for asylum seekers. Home Office figures show 351 people made the journey in six boats on Monday, taking the provisional total for 2024 to date 21,403. Migrants on an inflatable dinghy attempt to cross the English Channel to reach Britain, on the beach of the Slack dunes in Wimereux, France govt and politics"},{"score":0.813407,"label":"/travel/transports/sea travel"},{"score":0.796168,"label":"/society/crime/personal offense"},{"score":0.78467,"label":"/society/crime/personal offense/assault"},{"score":0.63713,"label":"/society/crime/property crime/smuggling"},{"score":0.567955,"label":"/law You don't have permission to access the page you requested What is this page?The website you are visiting is protected.For security reasons this page cannot be displayed Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale rider overtakes Milan Fretin of Cofidis for GC lead Bennett sprinted to victory ahead of runner-up Paul Penhoët (Groupama-FDJ) and third-placed Sasha Weemaes (Bingoal WB) in Abbeville The peloton caught the last remaining breakaway rider Cyrus Monk (Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team) with 9km to go before organising their respective lead-out trains for the sprint finish Monk was part of an initial breakaway of three that gained more than eight minutes on the field Bennett moved into the overall race lead with four seconds ahead of Milan Fretin (Cofidis) and eight seconds ahead of Penhoët as the race heads into stage 3 on Thursday The second stage at the 4 Jours de Dunkerque was a 183.3km race from Wimereux to Abbeville with five categorised climbs before a Huplandre followed by two intermediate sprints before the final two climbs Quesnoy-le-Montant and Moyenneville and run-in to Abbeville A trio emerged off the front of the pack just 30km into the race with Maxime Jarnet (Van Rysel-Roubaix) Robin Plamondon (CIC U Nantes Atlantique) and Cyrus Monk (Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team) building a lead to more than eight minutes Gwen Leclainche (Philippe Wagner/Bazin) tried to bridge across but couldn't connect with the breakaway riders and ended up stuck in no-man's land until he was caught with 120km to go and Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale did the lion's share of the pace-setting at the front of the peloton and Monk launched a solo attack at 40km out The pair of chasers were caught with 26km remaining but Monk pressed on to maintain his solo lead of 1:20 Monk's gap was slashed to just 15 seconds with inside 20km from the finish and his valiant effort in the day-long breakaway came to an end with 9km to go From there the path was clear for the sprinters' teams to organise their respective lead-outs Results powered by FirstCycling Kirsten has a background in Kinesiology and Health Science She has been involved in cycling from the community and grassroots level to professional cycling's biggest races She began her sports journalism career with Cyclingnews as a North American Correspondent in 2006 Kirsten became Women's Editor – overseeing the content strategy race coverage and growth of women's professional cycling – before becoming Deputy Editor in 2023 Victims part of group of about 70 trying to board vessels off seaside resort of Wimereux in early hours of Sunday Five people have died and a sixth is in a critical condition after getting into difficulty in icy waters trying to reach the UK from northern France Four people were found dead in the early hours of Sunday morning while the body of a fifth victim was found by a walker at about 9am The victims were part of a group of more than 70 people attempting to board boats off the seaside resort of Wimereux on Sunday including two young children and one pregnant woman taken for urgent care in Boulogne La Voix Du Nord reported that among those rescued from the drowning incident was a one-month-old baby The maritime prefecture for the Channel region in northern France said it had received reports of a boat in difficulty near the beach in Wimereux at 1.45am (0045 GMT) Security officials near the area rescued those closest to the shore and at 2am “three unconscious people were spotted at sea” At 2.15am a French navy helicopter arrived from Le Touquet while a fourth unconscious person was spotted by the Abeille Normandie patrol boat and winched up by the helicopter “Two other people in a worrying state of health were also rescued on the beach by the internal security forces,” the statement added One of them was unconscious and taken to Boulogne-sur-Mer hospital while the second person was in severe hypothermia A large surveillance team continued working through the night and at about 8.45am a fifth person was found dead on the shore by a walker the prefecture said of the first reported deaths crossing the Channel since 15 December More than 30 people were treated by emergency services had said about 70 people were brought in at about 3am “Some of the survivors did not stay and told us they wanted to go to the Dunkirk train station to reach an accommodation centre in Armentières,” the source told the Agence France-Presse news agency Authorities have launched an investigation into “aggravated manslaughter” and other crimes the Boulogne-sur-Mer public prosecutor’s office said The first four people found dead were identified as Iraqi and Syrian La Voix du Nord reported that hundreds of people had sought to take advantage of weaker winds to try to reach the UK despite the sub-zero air temperatures and 9C (48.2F) water UK Home Office figures published on Sunday revealed that 124 refugees and migrants crossed the Channel in three boats on Saturday Poor weather is believed to be a contributory factor in the large gap in crossings in recent weeks The rescue operation continued throughout the night Photograph: Florent Caffery/PHOTOPQR/VOIX DU NORD/MAXPPPDavid Cameron said the deaths showed how urgent it was to break the people-smuggling business model but it just shows we’ve got to stop the boats we’ve got to stop this illegal trade in human beings,” he said described the incident as “just awful” and said more must be done to stop criminals exploiting people “I refuse to accept that somehow these gangs are untouchable and we can’t do anything about it,” he told the BBC A spokesperson for the humanitarian organisation Utopia 56 said: “We cannot imagine the level of pain and suffering created by these situations Why do we let people die when we could actually build solutions why are political responsibilities never pointed at?” the chief executive of the Refugee Council said he was “deeply saddened by the terrible loss of life” and that the deaths must act as a “wake-up call” for the UK government to “take decisive action and reduce dangerous Channel crossings by providing safe routes for those fleeing war-torn countries or repressive regimes” A 36% fall in the number of Channel crossings in 2023 has coincided with a 30% increase in deaths among asylum seekers in northern France waiting to cross – with 23 deaths in 2023 One French NGO said that continued evictions from makeshift camps around Calais and Dunkirk would push more people into making the treacherous journey cross the Channel Five migrants died attempting to cross its near freezing waters of the English Channel in the early hours of Sunday morning French maritime officials said that 72 people—including 10 children—tried to get into a small boat which capsized while attempting to set off towards the UK from the beach at Wimereux They were trying to reach a larger boat when tragedy struck The incident happened around 1.45am local time The Maritime Prefect of the Pas-de-Calais region Jacques Billant told Agence France-Presse that another person rescued from the sea remained in critical condition in a Boulogne hospital Another was treated at the scene for severe hypothermia Four people initially died and a fifth was confirmed dead after being located at the edge of Wimereux beach Sunday at around 8.45am local time According to reports the person could not be resuscitated Many more could have died in the incident were it not for the efforts of a rescue mission involving around 50 firefighters several police vehicles and a French Navy helicopter Dozens of survivors were taken to a local community centre according to regional newspaper La Voix du Nord More deaths could have happened over the weekend as French authorities were involved in no less than four separate rescue operations The Guardian reported a prefecture statement noting 182 people were rescued offshore by French resources during the night of 13 January to 14 January 2024 and during the day on 14 January.” The coastline around the port of Calais is the shortest crossing point to England Over two decades after the closure of a Red Cross centre in Sangatte hundreds of migrants are still living in tents and makeshift shelters near Calais and Dunkirk in the hope of making the dangerous crossing to the UK coast—either hidden in a truck or aboard a small boat or dinghy Well over 300 asylum seekers have died attempting the Channel crossing since 1999 visited the stretch of coast where the incident took place “This tragedy happened not very far at all from the French coast This isn’t one that happened miles out to sea Our understanding is that this boat got into difficulty in relatively shallow waters and that people jumped off trying to get back to shore “The water temperature is about nine degrees Celsius I don’t think it would take very long before hypothermia would set in.” Maritime Prefect Billant concurred: “The water temperature is 7C Many of the countries from which migrant workers are seeking to escape to Europe due to decades of US imperialist violence which London has been involved in up to its neck The latest deaths are the first recorded for 2024 A boat crossing the previous day is believed to have broken a near four-week period during which no crossings to Britain were recorded due to adverse weather conditions Speaking to the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg on Sunday former Conservative prime minister David Cameron now foreign secretary in the Sunak government put on his best furrowed brow expression declaring “You can only think about what an appalling end it would be and the cold waters of the Channel in the middle of the night It breaks my heart to hear about it.” He claimed the British government had done “a huge amount” to support French authorities with policing and intelligence operations does not deflect one iota from the fact that they all have the blood of migrants on their hands the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition headed by Cameron unveiled a set of administrative and legislative measure as part of the Home Office’s “hostile environment” policy specifically aimed at making life as difficult as possible for anyone without a legal leave to remain to force them to leave the country The policy was denounced by the United Nations Human Rights Council as fostering xenophobia The dozen years since have witnessed an unprecedented lurch to the right on immigration in the UK and across Europe with the ruling elite now adopting policies previously associated with fascist movements Cameron said that the only answer to the latest deaths was more repression, as he pressed for the passing of his government’s Rwanda Deportation Bill as “essential” to deter small boats crossing the Channel The aim of the Bill is to allow immediate deportation to Rwanda of migrant arrivals to the UK coast in small boats Sunak is attempting to revive the Bill after it was ruled unlawful by the Supreme Court in November In December the modified Bill passed its second reading by 313 votes to 269 removes the duty of public authorities not to act in a way which is incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and of the UK courts to “take account of” relevant cases of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and allows ministers to ignore temporary injunctions issued by the ECtHR This brutal Bill as it stands does not satisfy the fascistic wing of the Tory Party—numbering dozens of MPs—who are seeking with a series of amendments in votes on Tuesday and Wednesday to ensure it is even more repressive The British government claims to have prevented 26,000 attempted crossings adhering to “Fortress Europe” as firmly as their British counterparts French border authorities took exception to the harmonious depiction of Ango-French co-operation “Despite the joint declaration of French and British interior ministers on 14 November 2022 who were committed to improving the work of dismantling the criminal gangs and their resources the British are not communicating exploitable intelligence on the departures of the small boats or are giving 'first level' information which is very general and not cross-referenced.” Starmer reiterated Labour’s reactionary agenda saying the latest drownings were a “tragic loss of life” but “I absolutely agree we need to stop these Channel crossings” because it is a “gimmick” that has cost hundreds of millions of pounds without deporting a single asylum seeker Labour would instead “go after the criminal gangs that are running this vile trade [of boat crossings]” and carry out even harsher prosecutions of its victims Last September Sky News host Trevor Phillips asked Starmer if he was prepared to use a section 38b order under the Terrorism Act 2000—which requires people to report suspects involved in terrorism to the police—against the families of children aboard small Channel crossing boats “What I have said is that we need to put them in the bracket of terrorists That’s how we smash those gangs behind the boats.” Fill out the form to be contacted by someone from the WSWS in your area about getting involved Lax employment law cited as motivation for ice-cold crossing in which five people died off Wimereux The mayor of the French seaside resort where five people died off the coast trying to reach the UK has blamed the British immigration system for the crisis that engulfed the town at the weekend “What’s happening today is their fault,” said Jean-Luc Dubaële claiming Britain was offering “monts et merveilles” a French expression meaning they were promising the world “We have to go to them and change their reception regulations a little,” he told a local radio station “They are taking the border from us and we have got to stop it,” Dubaële said “I am angry because nothing is changing.” The mayor said he was “touched” by the tragedy over the weekend in which dozens of people were rescued off the coast of Wimereux and 182 were saved in five different incidents along a 5-mile stretch of coast popular with holidaymakers from Lille He told BFM TV there was “anger towards the British” and sadness in the town and that it was imperative for British and French leaders to “rework the Le Touquet agreements” accords signed in 2003 that provide for the strengthening of border controls That’s why we have such a big migration problem here I hold them responsible for what happened in my commune this weekend and the smugglers too.” Dubaële described the smugglers as “criminals murderers” who exploited vulnerable people The maritime prefecture said it had been on alert since Friday and at least four rescue operations had been carried out, with five people dying in the early hours of Sunday off the coast of Wimereux 182 people were rescued offshore by French resources during the night of 13 January to 14 January 2024 and during the day on 14 January,” the prefecture said in a statement The maritime prefect of the Pas-de-Calais region told reporters it was a “very intense episode” but the authorities would continue to be on alert until Wednesday when the sub-zero temperatures were expected to give way to snow and squally waters Law enforcement is fully mobilised to fight against maritime crossings and save lives,” he said There are heightened concerns that more people will try to make the journey in the cold weather risking death within minutes if they fall into the sea Billant said: “Criminal smuggler networks place migrant populations at unnecessary risk by resorting to ever more dangerous methods kite surfers rescued two people stranded by the tide at Sainte-Cécile beach near Calais One was suffering hypothermia and the other could not be resuscitated Authorities did not identify either of the two victims involved Free newsletterA digest of the morning's main headlines from the Europe edition emailed direct to you every week day Apart from the fatal incident off the shore of Wimereux on Sunday in which 32 people were rescued there were five other rescue operations near Boulogne over the weekend taking the number of people trying to cross to the UK to well over 200 in two days 59 people were rescued from a boat in difficulty off the coast from Neufchâtel-Hardelot during the day on Saturday On Saturday the patrol boat the Abeille Normandie was called to another boat in difficulty and 58 people were rescued off the coast of Ambleteuse about 3 miles north of Wimereux while a further 20 were rescued off the coast of Pointe aux Oies On Sunday a further 43 were rescued near Pointe aux Oies while two more were rescued from a cliff Pictures of those rescued after the fatal incident in Wimereux showed several small children wrapped in thermal blankets on Tuesday morning as migrants boarded a dinghy heading for the UK Two men have been charged with immigration offences Our correspondent Andrew Harding returns to the scene to explain how events unfolded ShareSaveMerz defeat 'an obstacle not a catastrophe'The man expected to be Germany's next foreign minister reacts after Friedrich Merz fell short in a parliamentary vote to be named chancellor. 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The Belle Époque style of Wimereux and the Opal Coast is a surprise to be enjoyed right on our doorstep Lifestyle | Travel Think of the northernmost coast of France and Calais usually springs to mind Tilt a tiny bit to the south-west of the much-maligned port and you reach a string of seaside towns with lovely long stretches of sandy beach There’s a reason why they call this the Opal Coast — its sandy cliffs really do shimmer in the light Follow the shore road from the Eurotunnel terminal as it meanders through a gently rolling landscape of farmland and meadows After about 25 minutes you’ll come to Wimereux a classic 19th-century example of what happens when you take a handful of French industrialists with a bit of cash to flash add the growing vogue for sea-bathing and top it with a new railway line But Wimereux is more than just a seaside resort: somewhere along the line those Belle Époque architects went a little wild and came up with some truly whimsical creations more decorative detail than you could ever need (but still really want): they all make a walk through Wimereux’s narrow streets a joy and through garden gates smothered in greenery Just as compelling is Wimereux’s long beach where more 19th-century villas grace the wide seafront promenade you’ll find a few architectural blots thanks to some hasty post-war developments But they’re mostly masked by rows of blue-and-white beach huts plus a few ice-cream and waffle stalls thrown in for extra colour There’s plenty of room on that broad promenade to accommodate lazy amblers dogs of all sizes (with or without their own buggies) all of them creating a perpetually jolly atmosphere it slowly covers the slanted sea wall that’s studded with concrete platforms (and sunbathers trying to avoid the rising water) In a prime waterfront spot is the Hotel Atlantic whose laid-back air belies its Michelin-star status Dinner at the gourmet restaurant comes with not only an excellent cheeseboard and exquisitely cooked fish but spectacular sunsets from its picture windows When it’s clear you can see England’s chalky shoreline across the Channel reveals independent shops outnumber chains by about 20 to one Just before the street peters out at the Wimereux river you’ll see a little square around the town hall which hosts the Friday morning food market It’s a small affair and not especially pretty but it’s hard not to be seduced by the quality of the local cheeses stop by the oyster stall for half a dozen oysters and a glass of wine for €9 That should keep you going until lunchtime when you can dive into a bowl of mussels and chips on a seafront café terrace A few historical details leap out as you explore the town On the southern outskirts near Boulogne is the Colonne de la Grande Armée the column marking where Napoleon handed out the first Légion d’Honneur to his troops in 1804 It was from here that the little Corsican would have lanched his planned but never executed invasion of England For €3.50 you can climb the column’s 269 steps and take in sweeping views of the coast The free museum at its base displays the shell-ridden statue of Napoleon that topped the column until it was damaged in the Second World War There’s another wartime reminder at the Commonwealth War Graves cemetery in the north of the town Among its flat gravestones — the soil is too sandy for upright ones — is one marking the grave of Colonel John McCrae the Canadian physician who wrote the poem In Flanders Fields in 1915 hire an electric bike and get to know the nooks and crannies of the coast has a vast new addition to its Nausicaá sea centre Head north to reach the neighbouring seaside villages of Ambleteuse and Audresselles and follow the hiking trails that lead to windswept Cap Gris-Nez Combine beer and beach with a tasting at the Brasserie Artisanale des 2 Caps family-run brewery in Tardinghen handily located near the path to the wild Châtelet sandy beach whose architecture is almost as eccentric as Wimereux’s You won’t find the glamour of the Mediterranean — but you also won’t find the silly prices or the crowds It’s an enticing flavour of France that’s right under our noses Eurotunnel has crossings from Folkestone to Calais from £140 return (eurotunnel.com). Stay at Hotel Atlantic (atlantic-delpierre.com), which has doubles from €147, room only. pas-de-calais-tourisme.com TV star whose own home has unsafe cladding hopes tragedy will not strike again Crossings continue day after 12 migrants die in Channel tragedy FTSE dips as global markets dragged by Tuesday Wall Street woes Compare travel insurance for Europe Prince Louis steals the show at VE Day parade as he keeps dad William looking sharp and mimics brother George Prince Louis steals show with sweet antics at VE parade VE Day 2025 fashion: best looks from the day VE Day 2025 fashion: Princess of Wales to Lady Victoria Starmer Ukraine 'launches stunning Kursk offensive' in major blow for Putin ahead of Victory Day celebrations Ukraine 'launches stunning Kursk offensive' in blow for Putin David Beckham extends olive branch to son Brooklyn amid 'family feud' Pregnant Jesy Nelson reveals plans for future in message from her hospital bed after surgery Pregnant Jesy Nelson reveals plans for future in message from hospital UK Gillian DuncanLondonApril 23, 2024 You don't have permission to access the page you requested. What is this page?The website you are visiting is protected.For security reasons this page cannot be displayed. The government says it will only accept refugees arriving on ‘safe and legal routes’. Lizzie Dearden looks at what those are Rishi Sunak and Suella Braverman have been defending their plans to detain and deport all small boat migrants without considering their asylum claim, by saying refugees should use “safe and legal routes” to reach Britain. “Having safe and legal routes, capped and legitimised through a decision by parliament, is the right way to support people seeking refuge in this country – not perpetuating an evil trade in people smuggling,” the home secretary told parliament when unveiling the Illegal Migration Bill. But several MPs, including some Conservatives, have been swift to point out that such routes are currently very limited and weighted heavily in favour of countries including Ukraine. Under British law, you must be physically present in the UK in order to claim asylum. There is no visa for people to travel to the country for that purpose, meaning that they must arrive by different means. Most asylum seekers arrive in the UK through legal travel, such as commercial flights, on visas for other purposes such as tourism or study. But those who are unable to obtain visas because of their practical or financial situation, such as fleeing a war zone or hostile government, are pushed onto irregular and illegal routes often controlled by smuggling gangs. Because of the Schengen passport-free area inside the EU, many asylum seekers heading for the UK make irregular sea journeys to Greece or Italy and then travel over land until their journey ends on France’s northern coast. Ministers have hailed the arrival of hundreds of thousands of people from Ukraine and Hong Kong, but the schemes involved in those two instances have bypassed asylum processes with the creation of bespoke visas that do not grant refugee status. The “safe and legal” routes the government claims those crossing the Channel ignore are programmes where the UK resettles people from abroad who are recognised by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR). It also allows people to join relatives who have already been granted asylum in the UK. They effectively allow the government to pick and choose who comes to the UK, how and when. For that reason, the process is slow and extremely restricted. The UNHCR has said: “Critical resettlement schemes remain very limited, and can never substitute for access to asylum. The Refugee Convention explicitly recognises that refugees may be compelled to enter a country of asylum irregularly.” Home Office figures show that in 2022, 14 times more refugees were granted asylum after travelling to the UK themselves than were resettled by the British government. More than 16,600 people were granted asylum after travelling to the UK – including many who arrived on small boats – while only 887 refugees were brought to the UK under the government’s flagship UK resettlement scheme. A further 216 people were resettled under the separate community sponsorship scheme, and 22 Afghans who missed the August 2021 evacuation were brought to Britain. While 4,473 partners and children of refugees living in the UK were allowed in on family reunion visas, the figure is 40 per cent down on 2019 and the route is not open to other relatives. The only commitment made as part of the Illegal Migration Bill is “an annual cap, to be determined by parliament, on the number of refugees the UK will resettle via safe and legal routes”. And the home secretary said such a move would not be taken until “we have stopped the boats”. Opposition MPs and refugee groups have voiced disbelief at the claim, following years of warnings that a lack of safe and legal routes is a major driver of small boat crossings, and that increasing them would reduce demand for smugglers. Home affairs committee chair Dame Diana Johnson told parliament that an inquiry by MPs published last year said the government must “expand safe and legal routes”. Many MPs have pointed to figures showing that while only 22 Afghans who missed the August 2021 evacuation have been brought to Britain under the government’s latest resettlement scheme, thousands have crossed the English Channel on small boats. They now make up the largest nationality of arrivals, overtaking Albanians, while Syrians, Iranians and Iraqis also make up significant groups. A range of alternative schemes has been proposed, including “humanitarian visas” like those offered to those fleeing Ukrainian, that do not require people to go through the asylum process. Some MPs have called for the UK to create a preliminary form of asylum processing in France, so that those with legitimate claims can travel safely and legally across the Channel, and those who do not have to stay. Others have demanded that the government simply puts more effort and resources into the resettlement schemes it already has running. Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies govt and politics","score":0.985488},{"label":"/law govt and politics/immigration","score":0.939752},{"label":"/law It was as much a staple of British life in the 1990s as Edwina Currie or gazumping But the slump of the pound against the euro over the past decade means the glory days of Boozers EastEnders and other megasheds selling château blotto are long gone Which means you need other reasons to take the ferry/tunnel and linger a while in Pas-de-Calais — an often maligned region that many British travellers see only in the rear-view mirror as they scuttle south After the concrete and Carrefours of Calais is surely the first glimpse of la vraie France you encounter Here’s a winding high street with a boulangerie plus a fabulously OTT tea shop in floral pink and mint rows of blue and white beach huts face distant Blighty But what makes the town unique is its core of some hundred Belle Époque villas with shutters and turrets and just a hint of fairytale They were built as holiday homes for the haute bourgeoisie of Lille and Paris and an air of comfortable prosperity persists — the sort of place Monsieur Hulot would have gone on holiday; the sort Gérard Depardieu will surely pine for while in tax exile you could happily spend a weekend without budging lingering over seafood in the disproportionately large number of good restaurants you could even try the new sport of the area longe-côte (there appears to be no English translation yet) It involves individuals wearing wetsuits walking in a line off shore participants look like canoeists whose canoes have sunk very popular — and you read about it here first won’t always shine (although the cover of the Pas-de-Calais tourist guide picturing five women with umbrellas seems unduly pessimistic) Our explorations were based around food and wine — a posh refinement of the booze cruise we bought gouda with cumin and heart-shaped Coeur d’Arras we went to the pretty little town of Ardres 15 minutes from Calais for the opposite of the hypermarket experience At Boursot’s Wine Collection by the church buying in France still made eminent sense — duty being 2p to 3p per bottle of wine in France compared with £2 and rising in Britain he helped us to the car with substantially more boxes of £3 Vin de Pays d’Oc and £5 Muscadet than planned we headed down empty lanes through gently rolling countryside to the farm at Tardinghen that houses the 2 Caps microbrewery to buy white beer and Noire de Slack Back at Wimereux we popped into the tea shop for cappuccino with Chantilly cream and a heroic slice of tarte aux pommes perhaps we should have been heading into the brine for some restorative longe-côte .. The luxury hotel The four-star Atlantic (atlantic-delpierre.com) offers the classic seaside hotel experience admire beach life and passing shipping; take lunch on the terrace overlooking the sands The La Liégoise restaurant has an excellent reputation with the locals Double rooms cost from €140 to €250 per night The budget hotel The chambre d’hôte Villa Providence (villaprovidence.fr) was a real find the young owners have designed three exquisite bedrooms with lots of bleached wood and muted stone colours Breakfast was a mix of gourmet sweet and savoury dishes which can be taken on the terrace in summer